Rotatable opening container closure

ABSTRACT

The disclosure sets forth a container closure device utilizing a rotatable spherical valve element having a through bore supported on an orificed base and enclosed by an orificed cap which is rotated on the base and including rack and pinion means active between base and cap to actuate the valve element between open and closed positions of the bore thereof relative to the orifice of the cap.

United States Patent Middleton 1 Nov. 21, 1972 1541 ROTATABLE OPENING CONTAINER 2,495,015 1/1950 McGrath ..22 2/507 CLOSURE 2,120,510 6/1938 Rhoads ..222/507 [72] Inventor: Edward Belriamin Middleton, 245

Forrest Hill Drive, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada [22] Filed: May 8, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 35,673

[52] US. Cl ..222/507 [51] Int. Cl. ..B67d 3/00 [58] Field of Search ..222/548, 507, 541; 251/215,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,761,598 9/1956 Darlington ..222/541 Primary Examiner-Stanley l-l. Tollberg Attorney-Cavanagh & Norman [5 7] ABSTRACT I through bore supported on an orificed base and enclosed by an orificed cap which is rotated on the base and including rack and pinion means active between base and cap to actuate the valve element between open and closed positions of the bore thereof relative to the orifice of the cap.

4 Clairns, 5 Drawing Figures lllllllll/ l lllll 20 42 27 FIG I SHEET 1 BF 2 INVENTOR EDWARD a MIDDLETON BY g PATENTED M21 1912 PATENTED rm 2 1 I972 SHEET 2 [IF 2 FIG 5 I60 INVENTOR EDWARD a MIDDLEION BY 'elwamofev i; Mm/mam;

ROTATABLE OPENING CONTAINER CLOSURE This invention relates to a rotatable opening container closure device for collapsible or squeeze-type containers.

The collapsible tube and the squeeze-type bottle afford a unique opportunity for a suggestion of a satisfactory economical type of closure device which can seal the contents or enable the contents to be expressed by a simple mechanical operation which does not entail the removal of an element of the closure or the closure itself. For example, many hundreds of proposals have been advanced for closure designs for collapsible tubes such as toothpaste tubes, and none have been commercially adopted due to unsatisfactory performance mainly in regard to three of the main requirements of such closures. A closure device having no removable parts, being of the class considered herein, must be capable of being made in very small sizes to utilize as little material as possible and such material should be especially inexpensive. Secondly, the design must be such that it can be made by inexpensive equipment at very high rates of production and yet the assembly of the components and their design must be such as to permit automatic machine assembly by low cost machines at the production rate. Thirdly, the closures design should be such that the seal effected in the closed position is truly effective and especially is this importantin a container closure for toothpaste. In conjunction with this sealing effectiveness the valving action must be self-cleaning or self-clearing of foreign matter or obstructions.

It is a main object of the invention to provide a rotatable valve closure device for collapsible or squeeze-type containers satisfying the above named requirements.

It is another object of the invention to provide a container closure device embodying a through bore rotatable valve element, an orificed housing or cap containing said valve element, means including a rack and a pinion for effecting actuation of the valve upon rotation of the cap embodying said orifice, and a supporting base for the cap and valve element, said base being a part of or being attachable to the outlet of a container.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a container closure having an outer rotatable valve element substantially in the form of a through bore sphere adapted to be rotated for registry of its bore with an outlet orifice of the outer rotatable cap and in which the cap member presents substantially spherical surfaces adapted to register with substantially spherical surfaces of the valve element to effect a sealing and self-clearing action.

With the foregoing and other objects in view the invention generally concerns a container closure comprising a generally tubular base member and a generally tubular cap member terminating in an outlet orifice and rotatably mounted over said base member on a common axis of rotation therewith. A circular array of rack teeth forming a crown gear is provided about said axis in one of the members and diametrically opposed seating sockets are provided in the other of said members. A spherical valve element having a through bore and transverse outwardly extending stud shafts at substantially right angles to the bore thereof is adapted to seat in the seating sockets by its stud shafts to engage its pinion gear formed fixidly about one of its stud shafts with the teeth of the circular rack whereby relative rotary motion of the cap member and base member causes the spherical valve element to rotate about its stud shafts to cause the valve bore to align with the cap orifice and on further rotation to cause the valve bore to be occluded by the structure of the cap member. The cap member structure preferably embodies concave spherical surfaces adapted to articulate with the spherical surfaces of the valve element. Likewise the base member may embody spherical surfaces adapted to assist in a wiping action and in the support of the valve element.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent from a study of the following specification taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

IN THE DRAWINGS sembly in production.

Referring to the drawings, the rotatable opening closure device 10 of the invention comprises three main components in the form of a stationary generally tubular base member 11, a substantially spherical ball valve element 12 having a through bore 13 and a rotatable cap member 14 of generally tubular configuration converging to define an outlet orifice 15 adapted for alignment with the valve element bore 13 in the position of the components shown in FIG. 1 in which the base member, the valve bore 13 and the orifice 15 are coaxially aligned with respect to common axis 16.

The ball valve element 12 is characterized by lateral outwardly extending coaxially stud shafts 17 and 18, one of said shafts embodying at its root a spur gear or pinion 19. It will be understood that a ball having a gear element so provided as a fixed portion thereof may be articulated in rotary motion about the axis of its stud shafts by providing a fixed support for the stud shafts and a rotatable ring-like gear rack or crown gear in engagement with said pinion. Alternatively a support for the stud shafts may be rotated with the ball about axis 16 over a stationery gear rack articulating the pinion 19 (not shown). Accordingly while in FIG. 1 the stud shafts of the ball 12 are shown supported in internal diametrically opposed seating sockets or slots 20 of the cap member 14 and the circular or ring-like rack gear teeth 21 are shown rising upwardly as a stationary portion of the base member 11, it will be realized that the construction shown is merely preferred and that the rack teeth 21 could form a portion of the cap member 14 and the stud shaft seating slots or sockets could form a portion of the base member 11 in such instance.

The ball valve element is additionally shown in FIGS. 3 and 5. In the latter figure a preferred method of molding the ball element is illustrated wherein the central ends of the stud shafts 17, 18 present small sprues 22, 23 connecting to an outer assembly ring member 24 having locating surfaces 25 concentric with axis 160 and valve bore 13. Generally the maximum valve bore diameter d should be less than seven-tenths of the spherical ball diameter D in order to provide sufficient occlusion of cap orifice by the outer spherical surfaces 26 of the ball valve element when its bore 13 is rotated to a position substantially at right angles to the axis 16 of FIG. 1. The assembly ring 24 enables the ball to be thrust into cap 14 by automatic machinery in such manner that the ring 24 seats into the annular recess 27 inwardly of the mounting rim structure 28 of the cap. The ball when gripped by the stud shafts 17 and 18 in such operation is broken away from locating ring 24 by rupture of sprues 22, 23 and thrust into opposed seating recesses or sockets extending upwardly into the interior surfaces of the cap.

The mounting rim 28 of cap 14 embodies an inner annular recess 29 adapted slidably surroundingly to receive a corresponding ring-like head 30 rising generally axially upwardly and outwardly from the base member 11. Rim 28 and ring 30 have an interference fit and accordingly rim 28 must expand slightly and resiliently to permit assembly of the cap member on to the base member. Upon assembly, the retaining bead or ring 30 serves as a guide for rotatable support of the cap 14 enabling twisting of the latter on the base about the common axis 16. In the region of the stud shaft seating sockets 20 within the cap there is an annular recess 31 of sufficient depth to enable the pinion 19 to rotate freely with the ball 12 on stud shafts 17, 18. Further, above and inwardly of the annular recess 31, a spherically concave wiping surface 32 extends to the orifice 15, said orifice being of a diameter preferably equal to the through bore diameter d of the valve element 12. Above the orifice 15 a removeable spigot in the form of the conical member 33 terminates in a blind end 34 and rises from said orifice 15 by a thin connecting severable member 35 at the juncture of the base 36 of said spigot and the orifice 15, whereby the user may tear the spigot from the cap to reveal the orifice. Prior to such operation the cap is entirely sealed in the region of the orifice.

It will be noted that in the preferred embodiment illustrated, a plurality of pairs of axially extending, opposed stud shaft seating sockets 20 are provided, the respective pairs being angularly spaced or offset from each other to facilitate assembly of the valve element 12 within the cap with a minimum of relative angular adjustment. It will further be noted that each of the seating sockets is open at its lower end, i.e., towards the base, and widens outwardly at this open lower end. In this manner, it should be appreciated that the stud shafts 17, 18 will tend to automatically self-align with one of the pairs of sockets upon insertion of the valve element 12 within the cap 14, thus substantially eliminating the need for precise relative registration of these parts during assembly.

The base member 1 l rotatably supporting the cap 14 by the ring-like bead 30 provides, inwardly of such ring, generally axially extending annular seat or recess 37 adapted to receive the lower portions of the locating or assembly ring 24. The base member 11 by its structure continues inwardly and upwardly within the locating ring 24 to rise vertically in a manner providing a spherical seat 38 for the ball 12 terminating upwardly and outwardly in the annular gear toothed rack 21 sometimes referred to herein as a crown gear having a crown-like configuration of gear teeth. The ball seating surface 38 of the base member 1 1 embodies an annular recess 39 separating the inner and outer spherically concave surfaces 40 and 41 respectively, the latter preferably having a specific but small clearance relationship with the ball valve element 12 whereas the inner surface 40 is designed for sliding engagement with such spherical surfaces. In this way the annular recess 39 may receive foreign matter and the inner surface 40, being a part of an inward annular projection 42 of the base, is adapted to express some degree of flexure in its wiping action against surfaces of the valve element.

While the structure of the base 11 indicated in FIG. 1 contemplates that such base may form the head of a collapsible tube structure 43 of conventional configuration as indicated in FIG. 2, the base may be modified to extend substantially only to the effective diameter of its base ring surfaces 44 and to present therebelow a screw thread (not shown) adapted to mount the base on the screw threaded spout of any of the conventional forms of collapsible tube or squeeze-tube type con tainers without departing from this invention.

It will be evident that a twisting motion of cap 14 about the base 11 will cause the valve element pinion 19 to articulate in the crown gear 21 of the base 11. In such motion the ball 12 and bore 13 of the latter are caused to rotate about the stud shafts axis 45, it being understood that such axis 45 will twist with the cap 14 about the axis 16 of the cap and base. As a result of the indicated relative geometry of the components, about one-quarter turn of the cap will cause the ball valve bore 13 to swing from a vertical open position registering with orifice 15 to a horizontal position at which orifice 15 is entirely occluded by the spherical occluding surfaces 26 of the spherical ballvalve element. While the drawings suggest that the pinion 19 may be fully formed and also indicate that the crown gear or rack would extend through 360 it is contemplated, according to the invention, that certain of said teeth may be eliminated, i.e., a flat provided instead of a tooth or al-' ternatively the gap between certain of said teeth may be filled in whereby to provide a limit in the rotational movement of the cap relative to the base. Thus the cap may be provided with a closed position and an open position according to the invention. Also the pinion 19 I is preferably formed in a two part moulding having a separate plane containing the axis 45 at right angles to the through bore 13 in which event the pinion or gear teeth 46 should be star shaped and converge to a point to enable a mould draft and separation conform.

I claim as my invention:

1. A container closure device comprising in combination: a generally tubular base member; a generally tubular cap member rotatably mounted on said base member and having a central orifice located in a common rotational axis for said members; a crown gear structure rising coaxially from said base member about said common axis; at least one pair of laterally opposed seating sockets in said cap member; a through bore valve element having spherical surfaces and two opposed radially projecting stud shaft portions extending transversely of the through bore thereof; a gear pinion associated with one of the stud shafts of the valve element and adapted to articulate with said crown gear upon seating of said stud shafts in said pair of seating sockets, said valve element being rotatable on the stud shafts thereof by relative rotary motion of said members about their common axis from a position of nonalignment of the through bore thereof with said orifice at which the spherical surfaces thereof occlude said orifice to an open position at which said through bore is in axial alignment with said rotational axis and said orifice to define an unobstructed opening through the base member, the through bore of the valve element and the orifice of said cap member; a locking ring on said base member and supporting and retaining said cap; and a locating ring moulded integrally with said valve element and connected thereto to the stud shafts thereof by sprues adapted to be ruptured upon assembly of said cap carrying said locating ring and valve element locatably within said cap, to position the latter on said said cap having an inner annular recess adapted slidably to seat over and engage said ring-like bead of said base member to retain said cap in assembly on said base.

4. The device of claim 1 comprising a plurality of pairs of said seating sockets, said pairs being angularly spaced with respect to each other, each of said seating sockets having an outwardly widened open lower end to facilitate insertion of said stud shafts thereinto. 

1. A container closure device comprising in combination: a generally tubular base member; a generally tubular cap member rotatably mounted on said base member and having a central orifice located in a common rotational axis for said members; a crown gear structure rising coaxially from said base member about said common axis; at least one pair of laterally opposed seating sockets in said cap member; a through bore valve element having spherical surfaces and two opposed radially projecting stud shaft portions extending transversely of the through bore thereof; a gear pinion associated with one of the stud shafts of the valve element and adapted to articulate with said crown gear upon seating of said stud shafts in said pair of seating sockets, said valve element being rotatable on the stud shafts thereof by relative rotary motion of said members about their common axis from a position of non-alignment of the through bore thereof with said orifice at which the spherical surfaces thereof occlude said orifice to an open position at which said through bore is in axial alignment with said rotational axis and said orifice to define an unobstructed opening through the base member, the through bore of the valve element and the orifice of said cap member; a locking ring on said base member and supporting and retaining said cap; and a locating ring moulded integrally with said valve element and connected thereto to the stud shafts thereof by sprues adapted to be ruptured upon assembly of said cap carrying said locating ring and valve element locatably within said cap, to position the latter on said base.
 1. A container closure device comprising in combination: a generally tubular base member; a generally tubular cap member rotatably mounted on said base member and having a central orifice located in a common rotational axis for said members; a crown gear structure rising coaxially from said base member about said common axis; at least one pair of laterally opposed seating sockets in said cap member; a through bore valve element having spherical surfaces and two opposed radially projecting stud shaft portions extending transversely of the through bore thereof; a gear pinion associated with one of the stud shafts of the valve element and adapted to articulate with said crown gear upon seating of said stud shafts in said pair of seating sockets, said valve element being rotatable on the stud shafts thereof by relative rotary motion of said members about their common axis from a position of non-alignment of the through bore thereof with said orifice at which the spherical surfaces thereof occlude said orifice to an open position at which said through bore is in axial alignment with said rotational axis and said orifice to define an unobstructed opening through the base member, the through bore of the valve element and the orifice of said cap member; a locking ring on said base member and supporting and retaining said cap; and a locating ring moulded integrally with said valve element and connected thereto to the stud shafts thereof by sprues adapted to be ruptured upon assembly of said cap carrying said locating ring and valve element locatably within said cap, to position the latter on said base.
 2. The device of claim 1 and a removable closed spigot moulded in situ with said cap member about the opening therein and extending outwardly therefrom.
 3. The device of claim 1, said locking ring including a generally axially extending ring-like bead on said base of greater effective diameter than said locating ring and defining a generally axially extending annular seat inwardly of said bead adapted partially to accommodate said locating ring therewithin; and a mounting ring on said cap Having an inner annular recess adapted slidably to seat over and engage said ring-like bead of said base member to retain said cap in assembly on said base. 